Dickensian Weather!

Saturday, the 11th in Washington City (Downtown DC)


Mostly
Sunny
Hi 47

Hurrah! says Tiny Tim. Sunny and forty seven degrees. Bundle up my dears. The Cratchits wear multiple layers on the Dickens Tour. And those little handwarmers they sell at the hardware store are also a lovely addition to your outerwear. This tour is so lively it will keep you warm And after the tour duck into one of the many toasty restaurants in Penn Quarter to warm up. Zatinya at 9th and G (right around the corner) has a fireplace which is wonderful. Poste, inside the Monaco Hotel is lovely and warm inside and the food is delightful. Cosi, our starting point, has a hot, hot bread oven that is lovely to look at. And right across the street from Cosi is the Giffords Hot Chocolate window. There is also Bistro d'OC on 10th Street.

Things to see after the tour: shopping is easy with the Downtown Holiday Mart at 8th and F (you can't miss it my dears!)

More anon,

Mrs. C

What the Dickens????

Yes it is too true, Dickens is about to hatch once again. December 11th, 18th and the 26th. All at noon, all accessible and all so very, very much fun!

Meet Mrs Cratchit at Cosi at 10th and E and witness the wonder that is "A Dickens of a tour, Charles Dickens in Washington"

Courage in November!!!

Well the leaves are falling and the long underwear is pulled out of the cedar chest and it's time for the November "Courage! The Civil War in Washington". We'll reenact the War era in Washington City, celebrate the new holiday created by Abraham Lincoln (guess which one??) and take home a holiday war era recipe. Meet us at 10th and E Streets NW (across from Giffords Hot chocolate window on E and the E Street Cinema) at 11:00 am on November 20th. It's a fine way to start the holiday season and one of our guests from the Ghost Story tour won a walk on role on Halloween night so that will be an exciting event for both of us! Www.historicstrolls.com for more details. No reservations needed. Above are special photos taken during a very unusual Courage tour in 2009 when we were invited into the Clara Barton's Apartment and the Office of Missing Soldiers at 437 7th street NW by Richard S. Lyons. I climbed the stairs (in a hoop skirt!) and viewed Clara Barton's Civil War Washington home for the first time and it was delightful and dusty!

the Dickens you say???

Yes, m'dears, Dickens arrives on December 12 and he is in fine fettle. And Tiny Tim too, as he puts his wellies on for rehearsals (bit damp out there)and joins the Cratchits for some cocoa after tromping about. The mutton returns this year as does the rubber chicken. Ah, it's good to see the chicken up and about!

It shall be the most fun ever and Dickens bades you to come along for the merriment.




Join him at noon for " A Dickens of a Tour: Charles Dickens in Washington" at 10th and E St NW, (tickets on sale at 11:45am) on the 12, 19th, 26 and just added, December 27th!

www.historicstrolls.com for exciting info!

No reservations, just good Dickensian fun!

Cheerio,

Mrs C.

Out Damp Ghosts. Out I say!

Mercy! Twas the night of all Hallows Eve and all through the park, not a ghost tour was walking, not a spirit did lark. It seemed as though we should not get to thrill, but the Park maintenance showed or I'd be standing there still!

Yes, there was trick or treats at the White House last night and we were told that the park would either open at 9:30pm or at 6:00 am the next day. Yikes! I quickly went to Plan B which skirts the Park. But suddenly as I was handing out shredded bits of cardboard (having dropped half of the tickets into a rainy gutter during our attempt to sweet talk the Park Police), an actor appeared (the lovely Miz June) and announced that the park was open again. Huzzah!!

And what a wet and wooly tour it was. About 69 degrees when we started and with 10000 percent humidity (is that possible??)so I told the ghosts to switch wigs and hats and keep the same skirt on throughout. Ah, there is nothing like the smell of wet wool bonnets. And now as everything begins to dry I can safely say that this was our wettest ghost tour season ever! And next year, waterproof hoop skirts!

Oh Mr. Sun, please come out in November :)

"Courage! The Clara Mystery Revealed"

Is June almost over already? Good heavens. Still time to take the Courage! tour though and tomorrow's edition will reveal a mystery. Since the late 1860's a room was hidden in a building on 7th Street NW. About to be knocked down the building was being-....well, I'll let him tell it because on Saturday, June 20th, the Courage! tour will have a special guest and make a very special journey back in time to see Clara Barton's room, hidden for so many years. Join us won't you? The tour meets at 10th and E STreets NW (Cosi) at 11:00 am sharp and we'll trot down E street to go visit Miss Barton's room. This tour is accessible except for the 42 step climb to Clara's room.

Will the North win the war? Will Demetria Parrish be able to climb the 42 steps in her hoop skirt??? See how it's all resolved on Saturday, June 20th at 11:00 am.

www.historicstrolls.com for info or 301-588-9255

no reservations, just join Demetria Parrish who will be at 10th and E NW (Cosi) at 10:45 to sell tickets.

It takes courage to put on a hoop skirt....

Mercy Maud! Is it May already??? How did this happen and why aren't my pumpkin seedlings in the ground already? Woe betide the rain beset gardener and hapless is she who forgot to put the little markers on the peat pots. (say peat pots three times very fast) Who can say what will arrive come June.

And speaking of June, our fair June who plays Miss Dorothea Dix and Mary Surratt is out for a spell and we miss her dearly already. But the show goes on and so a hasty rehearsal is arranged and scripts memorized for this next week's incarnation of "Courage! The Civil War in Washington" (May 16th, 11:00 am).

Will the rains abate for our tour? Will the masses arrive to see dramatic scenes evoking the 1860's in Washington City? And will I be able to fit into my costume after all those little gluten-free donuts??

Do join us and see! www.historicstrolls.com